Singapore Gurkha Photography Museum

A Visual Online Archive

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Singapore Gurkha Photography Museum

A Visual Online Archive

In over six decades, the visual language of the Singapore Gurkhas remains the same.

These men from Nepal – famed for the loyalty and fearlessness – are recognised in uniform with their trademark broad-rimmed khaki hat. Since 1949, the Singapore Gurkha Contingent has been established in the Lion City (Kota Singa) as they live quietly among us.

Studio portrait at a Paya Lebar studio. Arun Kumar Tamang with his wife, Meena Tamang and son – just 7 days old when this portrait was taken. By then, Arun has been in the Singapore Gurkha Contingent for close to eight years. Date: Sep 1972. Photo Collection: Aswin Tamang / SGPM.

Visual Representations

of The Gurkha community in Singapore

Visual Representations

of The Gurkha community in Singapore

A visibly invisible community, their role was thrust into prominence during the communal riots in the 1950s & 60s – keeping the peace as an impartial force.

Yet, photographs, or visual representations, of the Gurkhas by the state and its organs, as well as the media depict them the same way as their boilerplate introductions: stern, steely and singular.

These personal photographs, scanned and archived from one retired Gurkha to another, revealed how important it was for these migrant sons to document their time here in Singapore.

Personal Photographs

Shivraj Thapa (left) and Sahadeo Thapa sitting on the grass at Mount Vernon Camp, during the Dasain holidays. There was a Chinese man who visited the camp to take photographs of everyone. He returned to sell Shivraj a copy of this photograph. Date: 1970. Photo Collection: Shivraj Thapa / SGPM.

Titled Singapore Gurkha Photography Museum, it is the first photographic archive of the Singapore Gurkha community displayed publicly online.

These old photographs span from the 1950s till today – with a focus on the 1950s, 60s and 70s.